Kingston, NY — Ulster County District Attorney Emmanuel Nneji officially announced the appointment of Elizabeth Culmone-Mills as the next Chief Assistant District Attorney. This appointment is DA Nneji’s first official act as District Attorney.
“I first met Liz in 2007 and interviewed her as a candidate for assistant district attorney. I saw in her the innate commitment it takes to prosecute the most difficult cases and support our community’s most vulnerable members,” said DA Nneji. “Her personal and professional achievements during her 17 years of service are remarkable. Her dedication to serving our community during the unprecedented challenges, presented by both the pandemic and the enormous changes in our laws which placed extraordinary burdens on New York State prosecutors, have shown what an incredible asset to Ulster County she is. I owe a debt of gratitude to her for staying on to help this Office withstand the impact of the exodus of experienced prosecutors resulting from the 2020 reforms. She is truly a public servant in the best sense, and she will continue to redefine the role of Chief Assistant.”
Culmone-Mills began her career with the Ulster County District Attorney’s Office in 2007; she was most recently promoted to the position of Deputy Chief ADA. She previously held the position of Chief of the Special Victims Bureau through which she led the efforts to establish and expand the first Intimate Partner Violence Intervention (IPVI) program in New York State, an innovative multi-agency initiative supported by National Network for Safe Communities and the New York Division of Criminal Justice Services, designed to target and reduce domestic violence. She has presented her work on the IPVI program and lectured on evidence-based investigations in domestic violence cases to local law enforcement and at both state and national conferences and symposia. Culmone-Mills has lectured at SUNY New Paltz and SUNY Ulster and has been a keynote speaker at One Billion Rising, a global campaign to end rape and sexual violence against women. In 2012 she was part of a collaboration, spearheaded by musician-activist Natalie Merchant, to produce a short documentary film titled “SHELTER: A Concert to Benefit Victims of Domestic Violence”, highlighting the impact of domestic violence on victims in the Hudson Valley and raising awareness of the need for a community response.
As Deputy Chief ADA, she provided professional guidance to ADAs and customized the office’s digital-case management system to enable quick assessment of cases in the new era of discovery and criminal justice reforms. Like DA Nneji, Culmone-Mills is a SUNY New Paltz alumnus; she obtained her law degree from Touro Law School where she studied while working full time.
“I am dedicated to continue to serve to the people of Ulster County under the leadership of DA Nneji; he has mentored me throughout my career and has displayed a steadfast loyalty to the community despite our office being faced with extraordinary challenges,” said Chief Assistant District Attorney Culmone-Mills. “I am honored to step into this new role and be a part of building the next generation DA’s Office, one that will continue to cultivate the talent and experience of the members of the office; and work to foster strong partnerships with law enforcement, local service providers, victim advocates, and other organizations in our community to promote the safety of all residents of Ulster County.”
DA Nneji was honored to take the oath of office administered by Ulster County Clerk, Nina Postupack, on December 28, 2023, in the Ulster County Ceremonial Courtroom. A public swearing-in ceremony is scheduled for Sunday, January 7 at 11 a.m. to be held at the Lecture Center of SUNY New Paltz. Additional appointments and announcements regarding the new term are expected in short order.
